Assessing the impacts of air-sealing on the sizing, operation, and economic feasibility of ground-source heat pumps for electrifying single-family houses in the US

Anand, Jyothis; Liu, Xiaobing; Anees, Fady; Li, Yanfei; Eckman, Bill; Malhotra, Mini

doi:10.1016/j.jobe.2024.111149

Assessing the impacts of air-sealing on the sizing, operation, and economic feasibility of ground-source heat pumps for electrifying single-family houses in the US

Journal Article · Tue Oct 22 00:00:00 EDT 2024 · Journal of Building Engineering

DOI:https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jobe.2024.111149· OSTI ID:2475719

^[1]; Liu, Xiaobing ^[1]; ^[2]; Li, Yanfei ^[1]; Eckman, Bill ^[1]; Malhotra, Mini ^[1]

Oak Ridge National Laboratory (ORNL), Oak Ridge, TN (United States)
Univ. of Tennessee, Oak Ridge, TN (United States). Oak Ridge Innovation Institute (UT-ORII)

According to recent studies and reports, in single-family houses (SFHs), air-sealing can significantly lower the thermal loads for space heating and cooling. Thus, air-sealing in SFHs could reduce the required size and cost of ground source heat pump (GSHP) systems for electrifying SFHs. Here, this study investigated the costs and benefits of integrating air-sealing with GSHPs for retrofitting existing SFHs when compared with air-source heat pumps. A whole building energy simulation tool integrated with an advanced design tool for modeling ground heat exchangers was used to calculate changes in required GSHP capacity, total borehole length, and building energy consumption with and without air-sealing in SFHs in 16 US climatic regions. The results from this study showed that reducing outdoor air infiltration from 0.8 air changes per hour (ACH) to the minimum ventilation requirement (0.35 ACH) can significantly reduce borehole length (up to 55 %), GSHP capacity (up to 48 %), and total heating electricity reduction, especially in cold climates (up to 44 %). The results also showed that for airtight homes (0.03 ACH infiltration) with a direct outdoor air system, the minimum required borehole length, GSHP capacity, and total heating electricity consumption can be reduced up to 70 %, 68 %, and 67 %, respectively, when compared with SFHs with 0.8 ACH infiltration. Moreover, the life cycle cost analysis showed that air-sealing in conjunction with a GSHP is more profitable than replacing the existing system with an air-source heat pump, even without any incentives for most climatic regions in the US (except for some hot regions).

View Accepted Manuscript (DOE)

Research Organization:: Oak Ridge National Laboratory (ORNL), Oak Ridge, TN (United States)

Sponsoring Organization:: USDOE Office of Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy (EERE), Renewable Power Office. Geothermal Technologies Office

Grant/Contract Number:: AC05-00OR22725

OSTI ID:: 2475719

Journal Information:: Journal of Building Engineering, Journal Name: Journal of Building Engineering Vol. 98; ISSN 2352-7102

Publisher:: ElsevierCopyright Statement

Country of Publication:: United States

Language:: English

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